During my early career period, I was used to a mindset that once I collect a check and get the document signed, the sale is over.

Q: How has personal development contributed to your success as an advisor?
Before the COVID-19 pandemic, I was not so active on social media platforms. So, this COVID-19 pandemic “holidays”, I have decided to make best use of it. That way, I started browsing on the net. I started watching videos, watching some reels. Especially those videos pertaining to blogs. And that gave me an intuition to pen down, to write down some of my own thoughts. And those thoughts were of the queries, the questions that were asked by my client, especially from the HNI families. And definitely, it gave me an inner instinct to know much more about that selected topic or that selected particular question. So, that way it helped me to develop my separate personality, which were not there earlier before the COVID-19 pandemic.

Q: What strategies help you continuously develop skills for better client service?

Though we are successful in our profession, though we have been achieving MDRT, and though we are serious in our profession, we must be in a state of mind, wherein we are trying to learn the state of mind of our prospect. This skill is most important because in the insurance field, settling the claim is not the only way of providing services to our client. But moreover, it requires a sense, it requires a conscious effort, wherein you can read your prospect's mind. And accordingly, you will make your range with his thoughts. And accordingly, you will construct your sentence, you will construct your flow of language, which will help him to understand your product, your way of thinking, and which will make you close your sale in a stipulated period. For that, it requires conscious efforts and that effort can be made more constructive with the help of journals.

Q: What advice do you have for advisors looking to improve relationships through personal development?

Well, during my early career period, I was used to a mindset that once I collect a check and get the document signed, the sale is over. But over a period of time, I came to know, no, it is not the way, it is actually the period when the sale begins. So, accordingly, I came up with a mind that I should inform, I should update the client on the total proposal completion process. So, with that, I started writing a detailed email to the client once the proposal is submitted. So, with that client is in a comfort zone because he came to know all the steps which will be coming across the completion process. It might be a law, it might be additional requirement from the insurance company regarding medical or much more.

In one recent case, what has happened, the client's proposal got passed. But it was accepted with an extra premium. So, with that, that fellow questioned me, Milind, what has happened? Why it is so? But immediately I showed him the earlier emails wherein I have mentioned in detail the procedure and wherein it was mentioned the possibility of an extra premium because of the BMI factor. So, that way, that client got convinced and not only that, he also showed interest in mutual fund investment. And that way, I win his confidence and his, and I retained that client which was about to disagree with the proposal.

Contact: MDRTeditorial@teamlewis.com

Transcript

Enhancing client relationships through personal development

Author(s):

Milind S. Deogaonkar.